THANDA Royal Zulu FC can move to the top of the National First Division table when they take on FC Cape Town at the uMhlathuze Stadium on Wednesday, kick-off 3.30pm.
A win will take them ahead of current log leaders Golden Arrows, on goal difference.
The Cape side, who they meet again away on Sunday, are marginally behind Thanda on the log and will be no pushovers.
Amabhubesi’s amazing run of form has seen them lose just once this season and after a succession of drawn matches at the start of the campaign they are now regularly finding the back of the net.
Not only have they scored 13 goals – six of these to the prolific Ace Bhengu – but they have only conceded four times in nine games.
Much of Thanda’s success can be directly attributed to their astute coach, Thami Ngubane, who knows how to get the best out of his players.
In turn, they have the utmost respect and belief in him, his training methods and his systems on the pitch.
‘I always knew we would get to this stage; it always takes time to gel a new squad together,’ Ngubane told the Zululand Observer on Monday.
‘We had to first achieve high levels of fitness, then work on our tactics and systems according to the strengths of the players.
‘Attacking and defensive plans require plenty of work and we are now getting it right.
‘But there is no cause for complacency. This is a tough league and we have a long way to go before we succeed in our aim of gaining PSL status.’
The brand of football they are playing now has put Thanda firmly in the spotlight and should attract a large crowd on Wednesday.
NFD log standings 3 November
Team P W D L GF GA Pts
1 Golden Arrows 9 5 4 0 8 2 19
2 Milano Utd 9 5 3 1 12 5 18
3 Thanda Royal 9 4 4 1 13 4 16
4 FC Cape Town 9 3 6 0 10 4 15
5 Vasco da Gama 9 4 3 1 6 5 15
6 Jomo Cosmos 9 3 5 1 11 7 14
7 Santos 9 4 2 3 12 12 14
8 Black Leopards 9 3 2 4 11 9 11
9 Witbank Spurs 9 2 5 2 6 6 11
10 Baroka FC 9 2 4 3 12 12 10
11 Royal Eagles 9 2 3 4 10 13 9
12 Highlands Park 9 2 3 4 8 11 9
13 African Warriors 9 2 3 4 7 14 9
14 CT All Stars 9 1 5 3 5 11 8
15 Garankuwa Utd 9 1 3 5 6 10 6
16 Maluti FET 9 1 1 7 8 20 4
